A new augmented reality (AR) cellphone app is offering the public a rare chance to come face-to-face with South Africa’s only pangolin species, without disturbing wildlife in the wild.
Launched to mark World Pangolin Day on 21 February, the Wild Voices: Pangolin is a free AR app developed through a partnership between the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital, the Habitat Nature Parks Foundation and its immersive production studio, Habitat XR.
The app allows users to project a life-sized Temminck’s ground pangolin into their own environment using a smartphone, interact with it and ask questions about its biology, ecological role and the threats it faces. The experience is powered by immersive 3D technology and conversational artificial intelligence, drawing on scientifically informed data.
For nearly nine years, the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital has been at the forefront of pangolin rescue, treatment and rehabilitation in South Africa. The hospital has treated more than 200 pangolins rescued from illegal wildlife trafficking, many arriving severely dehydrated, injured and traumatised.
Despite this, pangolins remain largely unknown to the public.
“So many people still don’t know what a pangolin is,” said Karin Lourens, the co-founder and head veterinarian at the hospital. “By making this experience free and accessible to anyone with a smartphone, we can reach far beyond the walls of our hospital.”
The app, she said, allowed someone to stand face-to-face with South Africa’s only pangolin species in their own living room, “turning an unfamiliar, abstract animal into something real and worthy of protection”.
Pangolins are the most trafficked mammals in the world.
“If technology can help more people care about them, understand them and stand up for them, then it becomes a powerful conservation tool.”
All eight pangolin species — four of which occur in Africa — remain threatened, facing a high, very high or extremely high risk of extinction based on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species assessments in 2019. The primary drivers are overexploitation for illegal trade, including the use of scales, local and sub-national trade and widespread habitat loss.
All eight species are listed on Appendix 1 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites), which bans all international commercial trade in wild-caught specimens, providing the highest level of international protection.
A recent Cites report found that between 2016 to 2024, there were 2 222 seizures of pangolins and their parts across 49 countries involving an estimated 553 042 animals. Seizures in just 10 countries accounted for 96% of the total. At least 74 countries were identified as being involved in the illegal pangolin trade, spanning no fewer than 178 unique trade routes.
The report identified China and Vietnam as the main alleged destinations for illegally traded pangolin parts, while Nigeria, Mozambique, Cameroon and the Congo were cited as major countries of alleged origin — noting that the reported origin is often different from the wild source of the animals.
Scales accounted for an estimated 99% of trafficked pangolin parts. While precise trends are difficult to determine, the report concluded that illegal trade remained ongoing, affected all eight species and spanned multiple continents.
The report said the main threats facing the Temminck’s ground pangolin were illegal poaching for its scales, which were used in traditional medicine, widespread habitat loss and accidental deaths on electric fences.
The app has been intentionally designed to reinforce appropriate wildlife boundaries. If a user moves too close, the pangolin curls into a defensive ball, mimicking natural behaviour and subtly teaching users to respect an animal’s space.
Developers say the approach allows for emotional connection without placing real animals under stress or encouraging unsafe wildlife encounters.
The Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital partnered with the Habitat Nature Parks Foundation based on a shared belief that conservation must adapt to modern audiences and technologies.
“The Habitat team is a creative force that shares our passion for innovative conservation,” said Wendy Willson, the co-director and legal lead at the hospital. “Their vision of immersive, ethical wildlife experiences aligns with our belief that the future of conservation must include bold new ways of connecting people to nature.”
The hospital’s work extends beyond clinical care, pursuing wildlife crime cases in court, providing expert veterinary and forensic reports and working closely with law enforcement and the judiciary.
“Treating and releasing animals is not enough if the cycle of poaching continues,” Willson added. “Without meaningful legal consequences and habitat protection, conservation becomes a revolving door.”
By combining medical care, legal advocacy and immersive education, the organisation aims to address conservation challenges at both individual and systemic levels.
Wild Voices: Pangolin is free to download on the App Store and Google Play, with optional in-app donations supporting pangolin rescue and rehabilitation efforts at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital.
Users can project a life-sized Temminck’s ground pangolin, ask questions about its ecology and threats and learn about conservation challenges such as illegal poaching, habitat loss and dangers from electric fencing. The app is free to download and supports pangolin rescue and rehabilitation